1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns a method to detect pressure in an x-ray tube.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A problem in x-ray tubes is that, due to a leakage, an undesired rise in the internal pressure can occur. As a result, generally a reduction of the tube voltage stability first occurs and later a failure of the x-ray tube can occur. An unforeseen failure of an x-ray tube in a running hospital operation causes replacement expense and downtime costs.
From United States Publication Application 2002/0185593, an ion mobility spectrometer is known in which a particular control electrode disposed opposite the cathode is provided to measure the pressure in an x-ray tube. The pressure in the x-ray tube is measured by a fault current flowing between the control electrode and the cathode.